T-lock joint



May 10, 1938. L. SHELBY 2,116,584

T-LOCK JOINT Filed Oct. 5, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 /7 INVENTOR. I E- Leo/7 JfieKa y BY 2%? KJWWM ATTORNEY.

L. SH ELBY May 10, 1938.

T-LOCK JOINT Filed Oct. 5, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet? INVENTOR. Leo/7 Jfi e/y ATTORNEY.

Patented May 10, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2 Claims.

This invention relates to lock joints and more particularly to T lock joints for use wherever it is necessary to join two or more pieces of wood together. To overcome the problem of making, and to-make a joint that is not only tight, but one that requires no clamping after the glue has been placed in the joint, I have provided a. new and improved T lock joint that is ready for immediate use upon assembly and so constructed that the glue, or other cementing substance, dries while the assembled article is in practical use.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved T lock joint for use in joining two or more pieces of wood together and to continue to hold them together after the glue, or other cementing substance, has lost the major part of its adhesive power.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved T lock joint for use in the manufacture of furniture, screens, screen doors, sash, doors, and the fastening of the segments of circular door tops.

The above and other objects will appear more clearly from the following more detailed description, and from the drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a part of a door, the stile thereof being partly broken away to illustrate the T lock joint in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of the same;

Fig. 3 is a detail of a male joint;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective of the stile of a door showing the T lock joint as applied at the bottom or top of the stile;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view showing a window sash with one of the sides broken away to show how the joint is used;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary perspective of an upper sash of a window showing the joint with a single T joint;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view in elevation of a five panel door illustrating how the T joint is used in a door of this type;

Fig. 8 is a perspective of the female portion of the joint;

Fig. 9 is a perspective of a male portion of the joint;

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary view showing a five panel door with the T joint, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, running the whole length of the stile of the door;

Fig. 11 is a View in elevation of an arched doorway showing how the same is assembled by means of keys; and

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of. one of the keys for use in securing the arched door-way together, as shown best in Fig. 11 of the drawings.

Referring now to the drawings, the numeral l5 designates the stile of an ordinary two panel door in common use today, while the numeral l6 rep- 5 resents the bottom rail and the numeral I! the lower panel. As best shown in Figs. 2 and 4 of the drawings, the stile I6 is morticed, as at l8, a sufficient depth to receive the T-shaped tenoned portion l9 formed on the bottom rail l6, as shown best in Fig. 3 of the drawings. The T-shaped tenoned portion I 9 has formed thereon a plurality of transverse ribs 20 which are formed parallel with the end of the bottom rail Hi to form a male portion of a T-joint and the morticed recess I8 is formed to correspond with the number of ribs formed on the tenoned portion IE! to form the female portion of the joint, and should the stile of the door be exceptionally wide, the tenoned portion l9 would be extended or elongated the required width of the stile and the morticed portion of the stile would also be extended in width to receive the required number of ribs on the tenon-ed portion of the rail, these T-ribs being formed in groups of two, three or four, as desired, and conveniently shaped to securely hold the rail within the morticed portion of the stile when securely driven thereinto. The center rail 2| is tenoned, as shown best in Fig. 9 of the drawings, the tenoned portion being a short projec- 30 tion 22a having an enlarged pair of elliptically shaped ribs 22 formed thereon, and the stile of the .door, at the required height, has formed therein a recess or socket 23, as shown best in Fig. 8, said recess or socket being adapted to receive the enlarged portion of the tenon 22. The recess 24 is cored out and generally shaped as an ordinary key hole, as at 23, so that when the enlarged tenon portion 22 is inserted into the socket opening 24, the tenoned portion 22 may be forced or driven into the cored or slotted portion 23 and locked therein to hold the center rail securely in place. This feature does away with the morticing of the stile l5 the entire height of the panel ll, it being necessary only to mortice the stile IS a sufficient depth to receive T-lock joint l9. The lower rail I6 is grooved as at 26, the center rail 2| is grooved as at 21 and the stile I5 is grooved as at 25 to receive the panel H. Inasmuch as the top rail of the door is a duplicate '50 of the bottom rail 16 and is secured to the stile [5 in the same manner, it is not thought necessary to describe the same.

As shown best in Figs. '7 and 10 of the drawings, there is disclosed the conventional five panel 56.

door which has, as shown in Fig. 7, a bottom rail It a stile l5, and a plurality of intermediate rails 28. The top and bottom rails 16 are formed and driven into the morticed recess of stile l5 in the same manner as the bottom rail IS in Fig. 1 of the drawings, and the intermediate rails 28 are secured to the stile as is the center rail 2|, as shown in Figs. 1, 8 and 9 of the drawings, the only difference being that in place of the wide panel II, we have a plurality of smaller panels 29 with the stile I5, the bottom and top rails l6 and the intermediate rails 28 having their perim- Y eters grooved a sufilcient depth to receive the;

panels 29. As shown in Fig. of the drawings,

the stile I5 is morticed the entire length thereof,

as designated by the numeral 30, and has a slot 30a running the entire height of the stile, to receive the top and bottom rails IS, the panels 29 and the intermediate rails 28, the only difference being in the assembly of the modification as shown in Fig. 10 of the drawings, whereby it is necessary 'to insert the bottom rail into the morticed recess 30 and slot 300. of the stile l5, and

then insert one of the panels 29 following this operation with the insertion of one of the center "rails .28 and repeating this operation until the desired number of rails and panels have been assembled into one unitary structure and the top rail I6 is securely driven in place, the top and bottom rails l6 and intermediate rails 28, being suitably grooved to receive the panels 29.

Referring to Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings, Fig.

5 illustrates a section of the lower sash of a window with a portion thereof broken away to show the mortice and tenon features, the numeral 3| designating one side of the sash which would correspond to the stile E5 of the door having therein the morticed recess 32 adapted to receive the tenoned portion 33 formed integrally with the lower cross member 34 of the sash, the tenoned portion 33 having formed thereon transverse ribs similar to those shown on the door rails I5, Fig. 3, the sash member 3'! having grooves, as at 35, to receive the window glass. As in the door structure, the T-lock idea is adaptable for use in conjunction with Window frames as shown and should the sash be exceptionally wide there would be "formed a plurality of ribs sufficiently spaced to form a tight joint, as shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings. Fig. 6 discloses a perspective view of the upper sash of the window frame wherein the lower sash cross member 38 is morticed, as at '31, to receive the vertical sash member 38, which has formed thereon the tenoned projection 39, the sash members 38, 38 being grooved as at 40 to receive the glass M.

Fig. 11 shows an arched doorway 42 formed of a plurality of segments, each segment midway the ends thereof being morticed as at 33, A l to form a key-way into which key-way is adapted to'be inserted a key 45, Fig. 12, which when driven into the H-shaped morticed recesses 43-44 acts as a securing means to securely hold the segments in locked relationship. This embodiment of the invention discloses a new and improved means for securing the segmental sections of a circular door top, or wherever it is necessary to form an arc or circle.

The manner in which the device is assembled is as follows:

In modern mill production the various parts of the doors or windows such as the stiles and rails, panels, etc., are manufactured to the desired requirements and, as best shown in Fig. 1, the door stiles are morticed at the top and bottom to form a female joint and to receive the T-lock tenoned male projections on the rails, the stile being also grooved sufiiciently to also receive the panels. In assembling the conventional twopanel door, the center rail is glued about its tenoned portion 22 and is inserted into the enlarged recessed portion 24, there being one provided in each door stile, two stiles to each door, and driven down tightly into the key-hole shaped socket 23, the panel I! being glued along its edges and inserted into the grooves 25, 21. The lower rail l6 having the tenoned portion there- .on, is then covered with glue and driven into the morticed recess l8, adapted to receive the same, the panel I! nesting in the recessed portion 26 which has sufiicient glue therein to hold said panel in place. 'The upper panel I! is then similarly inserted'into the grooves of the center rail 2i and stile l5 and the top rail It, not shown, is then driven into the morticed portion at the top of the stile, glue having first been applied to said grooves. In assembling the five-panel door as shown best in Fig. 7 of the drawings, one of the center cross rails 28 is inserted into the morticed recess'on the stiles l5 and when one of the cross rails has been located in place one of the panels 29 is inserted in the groove and engaged in the groove 26 and then a second cross rail 28 is driven into another morticed recess at the desired height and the panel 29 engages the groove 2"! in cross rail 28. Another panel 29 is then inserted in the groove '25 and pushed upwardly into place as described above until the top and bottom rails 16 are secured in place and the door is ready. for use, the T joints and grooves being sufficiently glued as above described. As shown in Fig. 10 of the drawings, the morticed recess runs the entire length of the stiles so that it is only necessary to insert the top cross rail,

slide first a panel and then a cross rail followed by another panel and a cross rail and inasmuch as the cross rails and stiles have grooves therein to receive the various panels the door is finally assembled andthe bottom cross rail I6 is driven in place and the door is ready for use. Each tenoned portion and each morticed portion of the various parts of the door as well as the grooves to receive the panels are supplied with sufiicient glue or other adhesive material .so that once the T-locking tenoned portion is in place the door is held securely assembled and is ready for immediate use, there being no need to clamp the same as was formerly required where a simple tenon and mortice was used, until the glue had sufficiently dried to withdraw the clamps from the assembled door.

In assembling window sash, the cross members are sufficiently morticed to receive the tenoned T-locking portions of the vertical upright members of the sash and glued in place, the glass 4| being inserted within the groove 40 and the grooved top portion of the frame which is similar to the bottom portion 36, Fig. 6, is then secured in place. The bottom portion of the window sash shown in Fig. 5 is quite similarly formed, the only difference being that the side members 3| are morticed to receive the tenoned T-locking means 3.3 and each member being grooved as at to receive the window glass. It will be seen that once the sash is assembled and glued, it is not necessary to clamp the same, the T-locking portions, and the morticed recessed portions adapted to receive the same, form a tight securing joint which enables the user to put the completed or assembled window to immediate use without 7 waiting for the adhesive substance to thoroughly dry.

In assembling the segments 42 as shown in Fig. 11 of the drawings, each segment is morticed to form a T-shaped recess which is aligned with a T-shaped morticed. recess in the adjoining segment so that when the built up structure is in alignment the user simply drives the H-shaped key, Fig. 12, into the double T-shaped recesses 43, 44 of each pair of segments, the H-shaped key forming a locking means to hold the arch or circle in the shape desired.

It will be seen from the above that I have provided a new and improved T-locking joint, simple to manufacture, with modern mill machinery and very inexpensive to assemble. This new and improved idea does away with all clamping means now necessary in the art of furniture, screen, screen door, sash, door and segmental door top manufacture wherein it has been necessary to not only clamp the assembled article until the glue or other securing means has become thoroughly dry, but wherein it has been necessary to have additional rooms or lofts to store the assembled articles while drying. With the present invention, once the parts have been manufactured for production it is simply necessary to glue and assemble the various articles and inasmuch as the morticed recess is adapted to snugly receive the tenoned portion of the adjoining securing member, the article once assembled may be put into immediate use thereby being a great time and money saver not only to the manufacturer but to the user.

Although the invention has been described as applied to a specific installation, it is understood that certain variations and modifications may be employed without departing from the fundamental principles as indicated by the scope of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A lock joint of the character described comprising a member having a tenoned portion thereon, said tenoned portion having formed thereon a plurality of transverse square-shouldered ribs, and a member having a morticed portion therein adapted to receive said transverse square-shouldered ribs.

2. A look joint of the character described comprising a member having a tenoned portion thereon, said tenoned portion having formed thereon a plurality of transverse square-shouldered ribs, a member having a morticed portion therein adapted to receive said transverse square-shouldered ribs, said morticed portion extending the entire length of said mortice containing member so that the tenoned member may be located where desired in the morticed member.

LEON SHELBY. 

